Three Wives
"She smiles now, seeing the new future in their eyes
So full of potential, a new story on the rise. "
One saw the story of a god incarnate in her baby's eyes. She knew from the moment she saw him that the divine quality of a supreme being was captured within his soul. As her baby grew into his future, it seemed that all was well. He played and laughed and cried like other children. But she always knew he was special. Alongside his stepbrothers, he showed such prowess, and she was always proud. When the old sage came to ask that her son and his stepbrother accompany him on his journey, she protested with her husband.
"He is far too young to begin this path," she whispered with a fire that only a mother could. But the King let him go anyway. Every night she prayed in vain for his safe return until her mouth was dry and her knees were bruised. Little did she know that it was only the first of destiny's trials against her heart. Years later, her eyes would burn with pride as she awaited a coronation for her son that never came. And then her heart would break as she watched him turn away from his birthplace in exile. She would have gone with him, but he begged her to stay then, that her duty was to be his father's wife first. So instead, she sent her prayers and her spirit with him. Through the wind she heard of his own trials at destiny's hand. And though she knew of his divine origin, she could not help but hold worry and fear close to her heart.
The second saw a story that might not be recognised. Under the shadow of another story, she thought her baby's story had died. She was content in the beginning, loving all of them the same, although only one of them shared her blood and name. It was only later on in the story that she grew wary, as destiny's will took its hold. Only to worsen her grievances, a serpent in the dark whispered in her ear.
"Your son will have what is rightfully his taken from him," it cooed, and those slippery thoughts coiled in her mind. But what was wrong with a mother who only wanted the best for her child? To be seated on the throne, to be crowned in glory, this should have been her son's story. And so she went to the King for he had to grant her wish. Although she could see that it pained him to denounce the other son, she could not relent for her own son's future was at stake. Although she knew it could end the King's life from grief, she could not take back what she wished for. If she could feel the potential dwindling away, what kind of mother would she be to let it? She only wanted the best for her child. But he too looked her over with disgust and anguish when he heard of his brother's exile. And she paid the price as a wife first, for the King, her husband, disowned her. And though she would realise her mistake and eventually her sons would forgive her, she held shame and guilt closer to her heart.
The last saw two stories from beyond the womb. At the birth of her twins, she could see that their paths would diverge all too soon. But she loved them both equally, as she did the other stepchildren. With all love from mothers, hers too could be divided among many but never diminished in strength. She watched as her twins grew alongside the others, and watched as they grew apart from one another. Although this saddened her some, unlike the other two, she was not afraid. For she was last and knew too well of destiny's game. She knew one of her sons would accompany the child who was a god incarnate, and the other would stay behind.
"Be well, both of you, and remember your mothers love you," she whispered to them warmly, both together and separately. She was mother alongside the others, and knew her sons were shared. So when both the god incarnate and her own son were exiled, she prayed for two. When the son from the mother who had only wanted best felt shamed, she felt his shame too. When both her sons in exile and the ones at home suffered the loss of their father, as a wife and mother she suffered too. And though she was the youngest, she held wisdom and calm closest to her heart.
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"Though barren at first, they came to be
Mothers together while the King's wives three.
One saw a story that she knew was divine;
Another saw a story she thought left behind;
The last knew that destiny could not be stilled
And calmly watched as it was fulfilled."
References: R. K. Narayan. The Ramayana [Print].
"Sumitra". Wikipedia
Banner Image Information: "Three Women". Wikimedia Commons
Image Information: "Three Rings". Personal Drawing
Author's note: The first story is meant to capture the tales of motherhood from King Dasaratha's wives: Kausalya, Kaikeyi and Sumithra in The Ramayana. In this Indian Epic, Kausalya is the mother of Rama, the incarnation of Vishnu and husband of Sita, while Kaikeyi is the mother of Bharatha. Sumithra is the last wife of King Dasartha and she gives birth to the twins Lakshamana and Sathrugna. Although they give birth to all of Dasaratha's children separately, they are supposed to share the sons equally and love them as such. In the Ramayana, although Rama is of divine origin and the King wants him out of all his sons to be his successor, Kaikeyi forces him to denounce Rama as his successor (and send Rama into exile) and instate her son Bharatha as the successor. The King actually disowns both Kaikeyi and Bharatha for her actions in the version I read.
I wanted to touch on each aspect of these mothers' stories. Kausalya is the mother of a child who is basically considered a god, and I wanted to explore the idea that while she may know that his destiny must unfold, she doesn't have to like it or accept it, and as a mother, it most likely makes her worry more. Then, I wanted to explore Kaikeyi's role as a mother who although she may love the other children, still worries for the story of her own skin and blood. I wanted to pose the question, "Although she may not have been right in the end, can she really be blamed for only wanting the best for her child?" She paid a price for it as wife, but what about as a mother? Bharatha hated her for a while, but she only wanted to allow him the best that being the son of King could give.
Finally, although she doesn't have much of any voice in the version of the Ramayana I read, I wanted to explore Sumithra as a wise onlooker and perhaps the only mother who understood what it meant to equally share her love because she had twins. She is said to be the wisest wife, and I really wanted to show her as being calm in everything that happened, while still sharing in all of her sons' pain and happiness. Finally, an underlying idea I also wanted to portray throughout the story is that there is a balance between being a mother and a wife, as in the end many of their decisions were affected by being a wife first (or having to appear to put that 'duty' first).